ICE-Themed Nativity Scene With Zip-Tied Baby Jesus Ignites Outrage

A politically charged Nativity scene erected by a Chicago-area church is grabbing headlines and sparking outrage across the country.

Lake Street Church, a progressive congregation about 15 miles outside of Chicago, put up the controversial display in late November, and it didn’t take long for images of the Nativity to explode across social media after they posted photos to their Facebook page.

In the manger lay Jesus, wrists zip-tied together. Mary and Joseph stand behind, their faces in gas masks. Nearby, Roman Centurions dressed in tactical vests, face masks, and ICE patches loom. 

Inspired By Real Events

The shocking imagery was inspired by recent events in a nearby Chicago suburb, where 300 federal agents raided an apartment building in the dead of night – a building officials say harbored members of the Tren de Aragua gang.

Among the dozens of arrests were also four American children, who were taken into custody, reportedly zip tied, and held for hours until they could be placed in the care of a guardian.

The Nativity display draws obvious parallels to the event – but as you might imagine, the imagery of baby Jesus bound in zip ties, with the Romans reimagined as modern ICE agents, has evoked fierce debate and even fiercer emotions.

Zip-tied Baby Jesus

If you’re thinking that the symbolism is a bit on the nose, church head the Rev. Michael Woolf would agree with you. “This installation is not subtle because the crisis it addresses is not abstract,” he explained, inviting viewers to engage in conversation about “what sanctuary means when families fleeing violence are met with separation, detention, and dehumanization.”

“Some people might see this scene and call it a ‘sacrilege’ or ‘profaning of a sacred thing,’” he continued. “What we really believe here at Lake Street Church is that what really profanes the sacred is when people are kidnapped and abducted off the streets, when they’re brutalized, when they’re held in torture conditions.”

“We know that Jesus was born into a Roman imperial occupation, and pretty much immediately becomes a refugee in Egypt, has to flee and faces political violence,” Woolf stated. “So we have to ask: what would it be like if Jesus were born here today?”

The Outrage Begins

Commenters online were split on the display, with some commending the church’s bravery and others lambasting it as over the line. “Blaspheme much?” wrote one Facebook commenter. “Non-Christians,” said another. “Real Christians would never do anything to the Baby Jesus or His Sacred Mother Mary. Sorry.”

The display is even garnering primetime attention from mainstream outlets.

“A woke church set up a truly horrifying Nativity scene,” said conservative pundit Sean Hannity in a segment dedicated to the display. “I guess the war on Christmas is back, isn’t it?”

Still, many have come to the defense of the church’s display, and Rev. Woolf says that the local response has been overwhelmingly positive. Pointing to the controversy, one Reddit user observed that “nothing pisses off fake Christians more than people being Christian."

“I love it,” agreed another. “Actual Christ followers in action.”

ICE Nativities Go National

Lake Street Church isn’t the only church using their Nativity display to comment on the immigration crisis.

A display at a Catholic Church at St. Susanna Parish in Dedham, Massachusetts, shows a manger with shepherds, sheep, and three wise men, but no Jesus, Mary, or Joseph. Instead, a sign reading ‘ICE WAS HERE’ sits in their place. 

Church leaders have resisted calls from the Catholic Archdiocese of Boston to remove the display, arguing that the display is in line with Catholic principles and is in no way blasphemous. “That some do not agree with our display does not render it sacrilegious,” said the Rev. Stephen Josoma.

Blasphemy or Bravery?

It’s abundantly clear that these churches are utilizing biblical imagery to draw sympathy for immigrants. But is it appropriate to put baby Jesus in zip ties and draw comparisons between ICE and Roman centurions to make a political point? Critics say no. 

On the other hand, these church leaders clearly view the immigration crisis as the social justice cause of our time. And given the ICE raids in neighboring communities, the pain clearly hits close to home. For them, the Nativity isn’t just a story, it’s a mirror held up to the present moment. Could it be that inflammatory imagery is needed to open necessary dialogue?

What is your response?